During her working visit to Washington, the Belarusian leader participated in a hearing of the Helsinki Commission, the US Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe. This independent US government body deals with monitoring human rights and the implementation of the Helsinki Accords.
In her speech, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya highlighted the daily repression in Belarus and the horrific conditions in which people are held in prisons. She called on the international community to intensify pressure on the regime to ensure the swift release of those imprisoned.
Here are the key points from Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s speech:
📌 “People behind bars are kept fully incommunicado. They might see the sky once a day during a brief walk in the prison yard. They are deprived of medical and legal assistance and any communication with the outside world. What the regime is doing to our loved ones is called torture”.
📌 “When you are in the hands of the KGB, your chances of release are close to zero. They will record a video where you confess to crimes you did not commit. The KGB posts these videos on YouTube as a means of spreading fear and hopelessness”.
📌 “For political prisoners and their families, there is a form of torture known as incommunicado detention. This is when political prisoners receive no word from their relatives. Most mothers can’t go a day without calling their children. But the parents of political prisoners do not have that luxury”.
📌 “Political prisoners are not only a political issue but also a humanitarian one. I urge the US to support our call to the UN Secretary-General to ensure access to those behind bars. We must hold the perpetrators accountable. Judges, prosecutors, prison administrators, propagandists, Lukashenka, and all his cronies must know that every crime will be documented and prosecuted by law”.
